The Roster of the 3rd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry

By Mike Phillips and Patrick
McSherry
Click here to read
about the 3rd Wisconsin on a forced march!Click here to read
about the 3rd Wisconsin's departure for Puerto Rico!Click here to for
the roster of the 3rd WisconsinClick here and
here for more info. on the actions in Puerto RicoClick here for the
biography of Joh Hommel, Capt., Company A

General:

Originally organized as a National Guard unit on April 30, 1833,
the unit volunteered for service in the Spanish American War almost exactly
65 years later, on April 28, 1898. The various companies met at their home
town stations in Winnebago County before heading for Camp Harvey in Milwaukee.
Here they were mustered into service on May 11, 1898 for a period of two
years unless discharged sooner.

The unit was assigned to the First Brigade, First Division of the
First Army Corps, and was stationed at Camp Thomas, Georgia, located on
the old Civil War battlefield of Chickamauga.

The unit was transferred to take part in the invasion of Puerto Rico.
The Brigade, also known as "Ernst's Brigade, consisted of the 16th Pennsylvania
Volunteers, 2nd and 3rd Wisconsin, and
portions of the 6th Illinois. The brigade
departed Charleston, South Carolina, on 20th of July, for Cape Fajardo,
Puerto Rico. After a change in plan by General
Miles, the unit actually headed for Guanica, on the opposite side of
Puerto Rico, arriving on July 27, 1898. Without disembarking, the unit
was sent to Ponce, where the unit disembarked.

In Puerto Rico, the 3rd Wisconsin took part in the action at Coamo,
The unit's assigned line of march was along the road leading from Ponce
to San Juan, the capital. This route led past the small town of Coamo.
Here, it was found that the Spanish had entrenched. On August 9, the 3rd
Wisconsin, 788 men strong, was sent to the right with orders to cross
the Coamo River and advance. Some enemy fire was directed on the unit by
the Spanish from a blockhouse, but the fire was quickly silenced by infantry
and artillery fire. This left the 3rd unopposed. When the American forces
entered the town, they found it deserted and that its population had already
surrendered
to reporter Richard Harding Davis!

The 3rd Wisconsin awaits orders to charge the Spanish
at Coamo

On August 12, the 3rd Wisconsin moved into position to aid in the
assault at the next point of opposition on its march - Aibonito. As the
forces were forming for this assault the following morning, word arrived
of that an armistice had been declared and the fighting had ended.

The 3rd Wisconsin returned home on September 18th, 1898. The Spanish
American War ended on December 10, 1898 with the Treaty of Paris.

STATISTICS:

Total Strength of regiment -------1353Killed in Action------------------2Died of disease-------------------41Wounded in Action---------------2

Barnes, Mark R., Ph.D., Senior Archeologist,
National Park Service, Southeast Regional Office, "The American Army Moves
on Puerto-Rico", Part 3, Spanish American War Centennial Website,
http://www.spanam.simplenet.com/puertoland3.htm

Clerk of Joint Committee on Printing,
The
Abridgement of Message from the President of the United States to the Two
Houses of Congress. (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1899.Vol
3. p 241-242, 493.

The Battle Flags and Wisconsin Troops in the Civil War and War
with Spain. Compiled by J. Stanley Dietz 1943.

Support this Site by Visiting
the Website Store! (help us defray costs!)
We are providing the following
service for our readers. If you are interested in books, videos, CD's etc.
related to the Spanish American War, simply type in "Spanish American War"
as the keyword and click on "go" to get a list of titles available through
Amazon.com.